Woman airlifted after bad Lebanon crash

LEBANON, Maine — A local woman was flown by helicopter to Maine Medical Center Thursday afternoon after a three-vehicle accident involving a commercial truck on Carl Broggi Highway.

The accident, which occurred near the entrance to Colonial Mobile Home Park in East Lebanon, caused two injuries which were not considered to be life-threatening, according to Rescue Assistant Chief Jason Cole.

He said that around 3:25 p.m., a 1996 GMC Jimmy was traveling each on Carl Broggi Highway and stopped to turn left into the mobile home park, when a 2010 Freightliner commercial truck traveling behind the GMC struck the stopped vehicle.

Cole said it was reported that the driver of the commercial truck was blinded by the sun just before accident.

The driver of a 2007 Mazda SUV traveling west on Carl Broggi Highway then tried to avoid hitting the vehicles, said Cole, but was unable. Upon collision with the Mazda, the vehicles went off the road and went off the road into a snowbank, said Cole.

“This has been the scene of several serious accidents over the past couple of years including a double fatal accident and a lot of them are caused by the sun,” said Cole.

The driver of the GMC Jimmy had to be extricated from her vehicle, he said. Jaws of Life were initially called from the Rochester Fire Department, but local crews were able to free the woman before the Rochester fire officials arrived.

The driver of the GMC was first transported to the Goodall Hospital, and then airlifted to Maine Medical Center in Portland by Lifeflight of Maine. Her injuries are considered serious but not life threatening, said Cole. Her name was not available Thursday evening.

The driver of the Mazda SUV, a Berwick woman in her 20s, was transported to Frisbie Memorial Hospital in Rochester for non-life-threatening injuries. She had two young children in the vehicle, and the children were not injured. The driver was wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident, and the two children were in child seats.

The driver of the commercial truck, a 42-year-old Sanford man, was shaken up but not injured in the accident, said Cole.

Both the commercial truck and the GMC Jimmy were destroyed in the accident and were towed from the scene. The Mazda SUV sustained minor damage and was also towed.

When the accident happened, Lebanon Rescue EMT Larry Woods was nearby and heard the collision He arrived about one minute after the accident occurred.

Assisting the two Lebanon ambulances on scene was an ambulance from North Berwick and advanced life support units from Frisbie Memorial Hospital.

Rochester Fire Department responded with a squad truck and Jaws of Life to assist the Lebanon Fire Department.

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection was notified of a gas spill from the GMC Jimmy. Crews on scene used pads to soak up the spilled gasoline.

Emergency crews were on scene until the vehicles were removed from the road by about 5:15 p.m. Carl Broggi Highway was closed to traffic for about two hours, and traffic was rerouted, as the scene was being cleared.